Never Neglect The AV Nerds.
One of the first things I do when I get to a gig is go and find the audio visual team.
They are a group of people who are at pretty much every event you’ll ever speak at.
They get there early, they leave late, and most people won’t even talk to them.
I don’t go and chat to them because I’m being polite - although I am a really nice bloke - it’s because it’s one of the best things you can do as a speaker.
Because if things go wrong, they are the people who are going to get you out of the shit.
And while 99% of the time things will go well, when it goes less well, you’d be really pleased you had that conversation.
A lot of the events that you’ll speak at are pretty complex.
You have clickers, slides, and microphones.
Walk on music, videos and visuals.
And those interactive whiteboard things that people seem to love.
So many things that could potentially go wrong.
You want the people who understand these things more than you, on your side.
I’ve had clickers that don’t work.
I’ve had microphones that keep slipping off my weird-shaped ears.
I’ve had videos that don’t play when you press the button.
Repeatedly.
Each time, the AV crew have been able to help me with this, and it stops me from panicking.
As speakers, we talk a lot about building relationships and about being easy to work with.
That doesn’t just mean conference organisers, other speakers and the audience.
It means the people who you don’t see who make everything happen.
It’s a bit like porters in a hospital.
You don’t necessarily see them, but without them, the whole thing doesn’t work and patients get harmed.
And that goes for cleaners, the admin team, the switchboard operator.
The effects of what they do infuse everything, even if you can’t see the people.
So when you get to your next speaking gig, make connecting with the AV team a priority.
Treat them as your allies.
Learn the names, and ask what they need from you to make the event as good as possible.
Because not only will they save you bacon when the shit hits the fan, the relationship you create will go far past that one event.
They will recognise you at other events and say hello.
And you never know, they might even recommend you to a conference organiser.
If you want to talk about how you can set yourself up really well for an event, give me a shout.